Summary:
In zip code 77488, there is one high school, Wharton High School, serving grades 9 through 12 in the Wharton Independent School District (Isd), a community with a high level of economic need where 73% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch.
Wharton High School enrolls 566 students and has a favorable student-teacher ratio of 13.7 to 1, which often suggests smaller class sizes. However, the school consistently ranks in the bottom 15-16% of Texas high schools, with its district ranking in the 4th percentile statewide. The graduation rate is 87.7%, matching the district average, but the dropout rate of 2.1% is higher than the district's 1.5% average. Spending per student is $11,405, slightly below the national average.
The most critical finding is a significant and consistent performance gap across all subjects compared to state averages. Proficiency rates are far below state levels, with Algebra I being the weakest area at only 16.67% proficient (a 37-point gap). Biology, English I, English II, and U.S. History all show gaps of 21% to 31% below the state average. This suggests systemic academic challenges despite the low student-teacher ratio. While the school's ranking has improved slightly from the 13th to the 15th percentile over recent years, the achievement gap remains very large, raising questions about whether students are being adequately prepared for college or careers despite a graduation rate that is not critically low.
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